Oral Narratives

                This week in Anth. 3410, we learned about oral narratives. At first I thought I knew exactly what we were talking about; I didn’t. I thought that oral narratives were simply all spoken stories, but there is a lot more to it than that. There are four distinct types of oral narratives: Myths, Folktales, Legends, and Personal narratives.

                Myths are thought to be false, but actually by definition, myths are base on true stories and are believed to be real. Myths explain genesis or the origins of things. They explain why things are the way are in our world. They are usually associated with religious values or beliefs and are passed down through generations.

                 Folktales are sacred stories meant to entertain or instruct. They are set in the past and are passed down through generations. Folktales are “short little stories” that are accepted as false. They are just for fun.

                I thought legends required a hero, but they do not always. Legends are stories of events that actually occurred (large events that greatly impacted society) and the stories are passed down. Elders pass on the stories to warn or advise and the tale usually has a “moral to the story.” Legends are believable stories, but the question of whether the events actually occurred is debatable.

                Finally, personal narratives are the only type of oral narrative that is not passed down because personal narratives are unique stories that happened to the person telling the story, a first-person account. The story may reflect personal or community values. These stories are retold over and over by the same person.

                When I was a child, I remember listening to stories told by my mother or read from a book. I am now trying to figure out which story fits in which category. In class we talked about Noah’s Ark. Noah’s Ark is a myth; it is a religious story that explains a new beginning and drive certain values and beliefs. An example of a folktale may be jack and the beanstalk. This story is of course not true; nobody climbed a beanstalk to the clouds.